I just acquired this pistol. The serial number is 1K69XXX. The pistol grips have the same numbers stamped on each one. There is no model number on the barrel, but when I open the cylinder it has the serial number and has MOD or MOO bEneath the serial number and below that is stamped 48-2. The barrel is 6”. Any info such as year made, what rounds to buy and worth would be helpful.

Thanks

You probably have a nice 48-2 chambered in 22 MRF or also called 22 Magnum. Those are really nice revolvers with ammo readily available. With out images, that is as far as I would comment .

The Model 48-2 signifies that your revolver is the second Engineering Change for the Model 48, and was implemented in 1962 with the most significant revision being the elimination of the fourth screw. Thus, the Model 48-2 was the first of the three screw versions for this model.


the Model 48-2 was apparently in production from 1962 to 1967 when the Dash 3, or Third Engineering Change was introduced, this was the elimination of the Diamond shaped border around the screw escutcheons on the stocks.

All of the preceding found in the Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson, 4th Edition.

Congratulations on the acquisition, and welcome to the Smith & Wesson Forum!

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Dave Brown
SWCA #3279

.22 MRF and .22 WMR are the same cartridge. Most of the ammo now is marked .22 WMR. Value is going to depend totally on condition.
And welcome to the forum!

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Mike H

The serial number is from 1971 according to the Standard Catalog. Great revolvers, basically the M17/M18 but in 22 WMR. The six inch continues to elude me although the four inch is supposed to be the one seen least often. We'd love to see pictures. Welcome to the Forum.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Welcome from Illinois, can't add much ,except the 48-2 gets a lot of attention/demand around here

Since the OP didn't post a photo, here's mine, also a 48-2. I bought this gun a couple of years ago and never fired it. Really beautiful, with 3T's, but out of a revolver, 22lr is fine for me. It'll be gone when I find the right deal.

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Remember there is a slight bullet diameter difference between the 22LR and 22WMR bullets thus 22LR ammunition is not very accurate in a firearm chambered for 22WMR. I had a Ruger Single Six convertible back in 1976 and it shot patterns instead of groups with 22LR ammunition.

Ed

Don't get the wrong idea here - you can't (or at least shouldn't) shoot .22LR out of a .22WMR gun. In addition to the bullet diameter being very slightly different, the case body of the Magnum cartridge is noticeably larger in diameter, and longer. A LR cartridge will rattle around in a Magnum cylinder and might go off, or might not, but if it does it will likely result in a ruptured case and unpleasantness. "Convertible" guns have a dedicated extra cylinder for each caliber.

By the way, MRF stands for Magnum Rim Fire and WMR stands for Winchester Magnum Rimfire - two ways of saying the same thing. Not to muddy the situation even more, but there is also a centerfire .22 ammunition called .22 Remington Jet (which cannot be used in your gun). It is used in the Model 53 which has the barrel marked simply ".22 Magnum". Shouldn't be an issue though, the ammo is very rarely seen and if you just ask for .22 Magnum ammo you'll get what you need.

Your model 48-2 is chambered for 22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire (WMR). Smith & Wesson in a long standing tradition, will not stamp their products with any indication of another manufacturer’s name so your revolver is marked 22MRF (22 Magnum Rimfire).

Another example of this is my model 16-4 that is stamped 32 Magnum not the correct 32 H&R Magnum. Colt did the same on their products in a well known feud with S&W.

22 WMR is a great round. It is misleading that it looks so much like a 22lr. It is much more powerful, although more so out of a rifle.

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"Free dirt, you dig."

[QUOTE=Dasbrain;140666289]I just acquired this pistol. The serial number is 1K69XXX. The pistol grips have the same numbers stamped on each one. There is no model number on the barrel, but when I open the cylinder it has the serial number and has MOD or MOO bEneath the serial number and below that is stamped 48-2. The barrel is 6”. Any info such as year made, what rounds to buy and worth would be helpful.

Thanks

Here are a couple of pictures. I haven’t cleaned the gun yet.

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	DB8C645C-7E8E-4A84-ACA6-D20ACE65B6CE.jpg (54.7 KB, 85 views)

MOD 48-2 is Model 48-2, as you have figured out by now. S&W did not put model numbers on the barrel. Beginning in 1958, they stamped them on the frame in the yoke cut.

What is interesting is finding a Model 48-2 with a 1971 serial number. The -3 had been in production for several years by that time.

Take a look at the screw that holds the rear sight in place. It is the one closest to the muzzle in the top strap. Is it directly above the barrel/cylinder gap? On a dash 2, it should be.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

Sorry. Eliminating the smooth diamond on the stocks was NEVER an "engineering change" to the revolver and it was not designated by any dash number on any model.

What distinguishes the -3 from the -2 on the Model 48 and most, if not all, target K frames, is the relocation of the rear sight mounting screw. It was moved away from the barrel/cylinder gap. That is an engineering change to the gun. Changing the look of wood stocks is a cosmetic change and required an engineering directive, but it was not an engineering change to the gun design.

If you go back to your SCSW, you will see that this is exactly what it says. The reference on the second line to the elimination of the diamond gives the date as the following year. It isn't a reference to the -3 change, which is spelled out in the previous line.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

[QUOTE=
What is interesting is finding a Model 48-2 with a 1971 serial number. The -3 had been in production for several years by that time..[/QUOTE]

Dash numbers on Model 48's seem to be a little hit and miss many on the board here have noted guns whose dash numbers don't match serial number dates. I have a 4" 48 marked as a no dash that per s/n should be a dash 3. And no I am not going to spend $75 for a letter to verify. Gun shoots great and that's all I care about.

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Jim
Many K and N Frames

To perhaps clarify what has been posted about dash numbers and serial numbers being out of sync, I once called S&W with a question and was told that frames are serial-numbered as they are manufactured but are not used for production in numerical order. In the case of slower-selling models, the two numbers could be years out of sync.

Another piece of information I was given is that a 1994 computer crash resulted in production and shipping records prior to that date being lost so the Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson is considered by S&W to be as close to gospel as we can get. For example, there were just three 686 Classic Hunters shipped after 1994 but before I became giddy with the thought of owning one of just three made, the person on the other end explained the lost records.

Ed